| Consumer electronics specialty retailers in the U.S. will enjoy solid 4 percent sales growth this holiday season as consumers clamor for digital TVs in advance of February’s broadcast transition from analog to digital, according to TWICE Magazine..
However, weakness in other retail channels will make this holiday season the softest in 17 years, market research firm TNS Retail Forward predicted.
Total retail sales will grow only 1.5 percent during the fourth quarter, representing the smallest holiday increase since 1991, when merchants eked out a 1.2 percent gain, the group said.
Included in the forecast were key retail channels, including consumer electronics and other specialty stores, conventional and discount department stores, warehouse clubs, home-improvement stores, and catalogs and e-tailers. “The holiday sales forecast represents a weakening from modest third-quarter growth as the boost from tax rebates runs out,” noted Frank Badillo, senior economist for TNS Retail Forward. “The benefit from a letup in gasoline prices will be overwhelmed by the impact of rising unemployment, tighter credit. |
